9/29/07

Some of these relate to the actual meaning of the phrase, some not.Peristasis

“Definitely, this was much earlier than that. He still had a moustache here. Plus it’s Kodachrome, so it’s earlier. They never stabilized the red dyes in that.” “He’s holding something.” Looks closer. “He invented that. Made some money and gave it all to the Widener.” “Yes, I heard. ‘Let my heirs walk’, he said.” “Do you ever hear from her?” “I wish. He was really stupid about her. Christ.” Looks even closer.

Smooth Pursuit

“Look…no, you’re not tracking…If you …yes, yesyes…Okay, I promise. Okay, look, what are you doing later?Whoa, models, is it? Can I shoot some backstage footage for you?‘Kay.I’ll hold you to that. Now what about me?No, look, she’s out of this entirely.Yes, love, but just love, no business.Got it?"

Bearing Soil

That corner was always a little muddy, and there was a little pond there. We played hockey on that pond every winter. Butch, Sammy, Bobby Wildman, and the Hayner guy. I think his name was Bobby, too.Bobby Wildman said we should get a junker car parked next to the pond so we could warm up in there. It seemed so adult at the time. Barbara Grady stomped her way through the ice at one end. She looked so maniacal, and just cool and wild. One winter it all flooded and froze. You could skate through the woods down to Route 7. Too many people moved there and the water table dropped, the pond disappeared, now there’s just a greener spot in that corner. Too bad, huh?

Civil Twilight

It was going pretty well. Hammered it out. One standout about dealing with her, she was unfailingly polite. What a great lubricant that is. We’ve got our stuff spread out on the porch, and the hour latens, and I tell her how much I appreciate how polite she is. And I feel like I can read her mind from her face. But now it’s magic hour and now it’s dark, and I can’t see her well enough. Then I was worried.

Minor Honors

What’s he up to? A club.

A heart. Something glamorous, with helicopters.

Two spades.

Pass. I thought he was so green.

One no-trump. He’s flexible. He’s always saying

Pass

He’s always saying he’s not dogmatic about it. Pass.

Four no trump.

I think it gets him laid. Double.

Whistle Punk

This kid must have burned five thousand calories a day. Up and down that mountain, setting those chokers. He was paying off his equipment. Then he quit to play music.

Cut man

This guy, he could think a cut closed, he was that good. Terrible breath, breath like rotted something. But he was good with a cut, and fast. So he leans into your face and you’re glad he’s fast.

Piano reduction

No, I made charts for everyone. I’m not leaving this up to that lazy vocalist. Here’s yours. It’s like sides, you don’t get the whole score. Okay? Anyway, if she can’t work out a little and keep her dress clean, you can’t expect her to copy music. Okay, here’s what I’m directing from. See it’s got tiny lines of everyone else, and these lines are a piano reduction. And if she comes in late with that lunk again, I swear I’ll… Oh, okay. Uh, do you need me for rehearsals until he gets here? Oh, okay. It’s been fun. Hey, did she put you up to this?

Circle of Confusion

Here, I’ll show you this. See, this is a pretty hi rez shot to begin with. So we’re gonna zoom in…this is definitely her, but who is this?

Can you get closer…to her?

Sure, a little closer, but after that it’s just pixels, you’re actually losing information. Okay, is this a hand, this thing, with the dark here?

Uh, maybe. This is an armpit, right? Damn, can you kick up the contrast or something? What about those genius machines on Law and Order where they zoom way in and it’s like perfect.

Right. So, is it a guy or girl? I think we’d just be projecting at this point. Shall we just make up something?

For the papers, yes. For court, no.

Wet Gate Answer Prints

You’ve worked a…too hard. What if something happens? She just has to be ready, prepared. If not, she’ll scratch a face off.

Item Number

I will do it, IF you fix that thing. I won’t do THAT.

Sure, it’s out. We’ll make you look good, don’t worry.

Donny says I should show my butt.

I’ll see what we can do. You know the ministry watches all of it, right? Even the outtakes. So…I don’t know. Not that you don’t have a wall to wall, double clutching, radiant derriere. Okay, I’ll try. Is there a budget for baksheesh? You’ll get RICH, you KNOW that, right?

I’ll believe it, I’ll see it. And the costume has to hide a body pack, so nothing improbable, there’s a good girl.

Okay, I’ll do that thing, I mean, if you still WANT me to.

Showing Smalls

They were both outsized. She was really tall. He was REALLY tall. I could never figure out what was the cool move with those guys onstage. Should I get next to them and get some reflected glamour. Or do they make me look small? I swear I’m looking both of them in the chest during that scene, where we’re arguing. Well, Donny says let them be sexy, so maybe stay by the couch and they can argue and sex it up downstage and they won’t have to reset any lights. They say it’s a tech rehearsal, but it’s really running just a couple cues and then a little pep talk. If they don’t have to move anything, they’ll be happy. Hmm. By the couch? So yeah, they kinda make you look small. Just be by the couch.

Physical Silver

If you really have it, you think, if everything goes smash, at least I’ve got this. This real thing. But you don’t know, a pound of it might not buy a meal. Plus rust and thieves.

Just how far gone a scene are you planning for?

Maybe no electricity, no gas. Barter only gets you so far and you gotta have a big pool of people to find the specialized stuff. Medicine will be scalped, it’s the biggest ticket. I like to think we’ll do okay because we’re smart. We’ll have to be tough, too. Get ready for that.

Pattern Bargaining

Her mom is letting her go AND wear that thing. So can I least wear this? And her mom is BUYING her one of these, not renting it, buying it. Is she that desperate? If she wants to go to Hayners’ after, she’ll take her. So, so can I? And wear this? After I talk to her mom.

Military Press

I’ll answer all the tough questions, you just give the facts. Good. They’ll ask about him. Fuck, they’ll ask about both of them. So I’ll toss that to you? Yes. Do not, under any circumstances -- if they ask about her and her…thing, her little event -- talk about the two guys. If you don’t mention them, they won’t ask. Then I’m happy. How much can they actually write about? Aren’t they kind of house pets of Division and if Division doesn’t like, they hate it? Yes, but did you see the pictures? I’d risk a gig just to share that with our boys. But, here, no one’s ever going to see this one. Jesus. This stuff…we could be digging graves in Anbar in 48 hours. Nobody sees this. Just tell them about him, and take questions. I’ll handle it.

First Inversion

You can just see this guy, see he’s the third guy. These two are actually on top of him. They were together and then this third guy was there. It was a little tense, but just a little, no big deal. It was good. We can use that.

Jump to Game

He was ready, she was ready, and they both could tell from what was said. He was from New England and she was from Spain/Oxford, so they didn’t have the same conventions. She jumped to game and they made it. Bigtime imps.

Straight Eights

When you get to this, shuffle, shuffle all the way to here, on this thing, like that, twice, and he goes…hey, Keno, what do you do there? Do you do this or that chunk thing? I just got two bars and then it’s her til, well til that long outro. She straightens out, right? On her solo it’s straight eights, right. I mean I can play it either way, but I have to know. I’m already pretty much turned up all the way by then, so it’s going to be too flammy, shuffle and straight. If that happened, I’d just stop.

Studio Brown

Here’s that brown in the middle distance. Then look at this room and there’s this really unlikely, if you think about it, really unlikely brown air, here in this corner and then, look, see this hallway or whatever it is, the same brown. Spengler says it’s the color of history. It was a turning point when they started using it, he says. The Faustian spirit, asserting mastery over time by reference. Space brings life to time, but time brings death to space, or somesuch.